Most people think of psoriasis as a skin disease. In a way, it is, since the disease manifests itself in skin lesions on hands, arms, knees, elbows, feet, and other parts of the body. The lesions form because skin cells are growing at a rapid rate, too rapid for old cells to be shed. New cells pile up onto old cells, resulting in flaky red patches, or plaques.

Plaque psoriasis is, however, more than just a skin disease. It’s also closely associated with a type of arthritis called psoriatic arthritis (PSA). In fact, up to 30% of psoriasis patients also have psoriatic arthritis, a condition that causes some or all of these symptoms:

pain and swelling in your joints – typically the smaller joints of the hands, fingers, and toes

joint stiffness, particularly in the morning, that makes walking difficult

joints that feel warm to the touch

arch or heel pain

pitting of the nails

thickened toenails

More facts about psoriatic arthritis

People with psoriatic arthritis tend to have lower bone density. To make matters worse, medications and steroid treatments used to treat PSA can also have a negative effect on bone density, putting you at risk for the weakened bones typical of osteoporosis.

If your joint pain is due to PSA, it’s comforting to know that there are effective treatments, including pain relieving medications, corticosteroid injections, shoe inserts to reduce pressure, exercises, and physical therapy. PSA can get worse over time, so get an early diagnosis at our state-of-the-art, conveniently located office in Solon, Ohio. Make an appointment online or call us at (440) 903-1041.